Baseball: Gyorko Named Player of the Year
June 05, 2009 03:54 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
June 5, 2009
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - West Virginia University baseball player Jedd Gyorko has been named the 2009 National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America District II Player of the Year, announced today by the NCBWA.
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| Jedd Gyorko |
The Morgantown native is one of nine players who earned the 2009 NCBWA District Player of the Year award. The other recipients include first baseman/pitcher Mike Belfiore (Boston College), right fielder Kent Matthes (Alabama), first baseman Rich Poythress (Georgia), second baseman Derek McCallum (Minnesota), pitcher A.J. Morris (Kansas State), third baseman Anthony Rendon (Rice), third baseman Bryan Marquez (New Mexico State) and pitcher Stephen Strasburg (San Diego State).
Gyorko completed his sophomore campaign with a .421 average, eight home runs and 58 RBIs and set the single-season school record with 28 doubles. He also led the Mountaineers with 150 total bases, 96 hits and 31 multi-hit games. He amassed 74 runs and had a .658 slugging mark.
The Brooks Wallace Award finalist started all 55 games for WVU, batting .375 with four home runs and 25 RBIs in conference play while ending the season with a 14-game hitting streak. At the 2009 Big East Tournament, Gyorko hit .636 (7-for-11) with five RBIs, six runs scored and one double. He went 19 games without committing an error at shortstop from March 21-April 18.
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| Vince Belnome |
Gyorko is also one of 36 players invited to try out for the USA National Collegiate Baseball Team. A First Team All-Big East and Second Team Collegiate Baseball Newspaper/Louisville Slugger selection, Gyorko is nine hits shy of 200 hits after just two seasons at WVU. He ranks second in the nation in doubles (28), third in doubles per game (0.51), 16th in hits (96) and 21st in average (.421).
The sophomore shortstop becomes the first Mountaineer to win the 10th annual NCBWA District II Player of the Year Award. Among the nine districts, District II is comprised of West Virginia, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and the District of Columbia.
Gyorko also earned a spot as a member of the 2009 All-Ping!Baseball Second Team, announced today by Ping!Baseball. Second baseman/designated hitter Vince Belnome was an All-Ping! Honorable Mention selection after batting .418 with nine home runs and a school-record 84 RBIs.
